Complications of roux en y

Roux-en-Y

Roux-en-Y is a gastric bypass surgery which is commonly performed to treat obesity. This is one of the most effective ways to get rid of excess weight. After the surgery, the patient will not be able to eat so much food as before, and so he/she will lose weight. In addition, in majority of cases, besides weight loss, cholesterol level is reduced and high blood pressure is decreased. There are other cases when Roux-en-Y is performed, such as stomach cancer, injury or infection of the bile duct.

Procedure

The Roux-en-Y gastric bypass procedure includes reducing the size of the stomach. The surgery can be laparoscopic which involves tiny cuts and a special medical instrument, laparoscope, with a small camera at the end, or it can be performed by making a large cut on the abdomen. In order to reduce the size of the stomach, the surgeon will create a pouch out of your stomach and attach in to the small intestine. This way the rest of the stomach and duodenum will be bypassed. Absorption of fat will be significantly reduced because duodenum has been avoided. The patient will need about four weeks to recover from the Roux-en-Y gastric surgery.

Complications

Diarrhea is a common complication of the Roux-en-Y gastric surgery because the ability to absorb fat is reduced. One of the complications is dumping syndrome. If the food is digested too fast or if you have taken a larger amount of food, it will reach the small intestine too quickly. This can lead to diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, faintness, cramps and excessive perspiration. There is also a risk of leakage where the stomach pouch and the small intestine were attached together. If this happens, you may get ulcer or stenosis. If you do not follow dietary instructions from your doctor, you may suffer from nutritional deficiencies. After the Roux-en-Y gastric surgery you may have bowel problems. Bowel problems are usually temporary. Since the Roux-en-Y gastric surgery is performed under general anesthesia, you may develop complications such as heart attack, stroke or blood clot.

Lifestyle

The chances of diarrhea will be decreased if you avoid greasy food because you will not be able to absorb fat after the Roux-en-Y gastric surgery. Sugar and refined food can cause dumping syndrome, so it is suggested to avoid such food or to be careful when you consume them. To treat this syndrome, you should eat, fish, meat or eggs. In order to avoid nutritional deficiencies you must take multivitamin supplements, iron and calcium.